I came across a video of my old school, Laura MacArthur Elementary, and the memories came rushing back.

Before we dive into my memories, let's take a little look at the history of the building. Before Denfeld High School was built in 1925, students attended what was called West Junior High.

According to an old article from DNT, there was consolidation plan discussed in 1981 that would have junior high students from West attend middle school at Morgan Park (where I also attended). West Junior was then converted to just an elementary school.

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Needless to say, the building has a long history and I'm sure if the walls could talk, there would be some great stories to tell and hear. I attended Laura MacArthur from 1995-2001. I think I even remember all of my teachers:

  • Head Start - Ennis & Bonnie
  • Kindergarten - Mrs. Zabrocki
  • First Grade - Mrs. Runnion
  • Second Grade - Mr. Shimmin
  • Third Grade - Mrs. Watterson
  • Fourth Grade - Mrs. Cich
  • Fifth Grade - Mrs. Lukovski

I might have misspelled their names, but I still impressed myself with remembering all of them. I remember meeting my best friend in second grade, playing football outside at recess, and even being weirded out when they served milk pouches in the cafeteria. The Valley Youth Center which was located in the basement was probably my favorite. I would save up all of my allowance for candy and then play the arcade game 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles In Time"

Of course, the building no longer exists and in its place is an open field and tennis courts.

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A new Laura MacArthur was built across the street.

Ian LaFont
Ian LaFont
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The video I stumbled upon was uploaded to YouTube by a user named duluber. They also uploaded a video of the old building being demolished. You can check both out down below and have fun taking a trip down memory lane:

North Of Duluth Is An Old Youth Camp On 150 Acres For Under $3M

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